Rick Olson, PhD

Dr. Rick T. Olson is an Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at the University of San Diego. He received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering (with an emphasis in operations research), his M.S. in Industrial Engineering and his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Prior to coming to USD to establish the ISyE program, Dr. Olson taught in the Business School at Loyola University-Chicago and worked as a medical device engineer for Baxter-Travenol.

Areas of Interest

Dr. Olson’s general teaching and research interests are in the area of applied operations research. He has particular academic interest in modeling, heuristic optimization and sustainability. He is also active in initiatives that encourage pre-college students to consider engineering careers. Dr. Olson is a senior member of the Institute of Industrial Engineers and has served as Secretary and Vice-President of the San Diego IIE Chapter. He is also a member of INFORMS, ASEE, Tau Beta Pi, and Sigma Xi.